A method and apparatus for continuously manufacturing liquid crystal display panels by continuously laminating to a rectangular panel only a defect-free normal sheet of a polarizing film with an adhesive layer have already been disclosed in the following Patent Documents 1 and 2.
The Patent Document 1 discloses the following points. Refer to FIG. 14. Firstly, there is provided an optical film supply apparatus 100 for supplying a strip-shaped film laminate 2 which comprises a polarizing film Y having an adhesive layer formed thereon, which is adapted to be used for manufacturing liquid crystal display device, and a carrier film Z peelably laminated to the adhesive layer The strip-shaped film laminate 2 is provided in the form of a roll 101 and loaded on a feeding device 1. The apparatus 100 is provided with an information reading device 3 provided in a determination station A and operable to calculate a feed amount of the strip-shaped film laminate 2 and read a defect position in the polarizing film Y, the defect position being already determined by being detected and recorded by a preliminary inspection. The apparatus 100 further includes a cutting station B, wherein the polarizing film Y is cut into a plurality of polarizing film sheets X which may comprise defect-free normal sheets Xα and defect-containing defective sheets Xβ on the carrier film Z of the strip-shaped film laminate 2 being fed, based on the defect position information read from the polarizing film Y. There is a lamination station D provided as a final step, wherein those of the formed polarizing film sheets X determined as the normal sheets Xα are sequentially peeled from the carrier film Z, and continuously laminated to respective liquid crystal panels W fed in synchronization with feeding of the normal sheets Xα. Further, before reaching the final step, there is provided either one of a removal station C(1) or a removal station C(2), wherein one or more of the formed polarizing film sheets X determined as the defective sheets Xβ are sequentially peeled from the carrier film Z, and removed from the strip-shaped film laminate 2 to be passed via another path. In this manner, liquid crystal display devices are continuously fabricated.
The Patent Document 2 discloses the following matters. Refer to FIG. 15. Firstly, there is provided an optical film supply apparatus 100′ for supplying a strip-shaped film laminate 2′ which is provided in the form of a roll 101′. The strip-shaped film laminate 2′ already includes a plurality of polarizing film sheets X which may comprise defect-free normal sheets Xα and defect-containing defective sheets Xβ which are preliminarily formed on a carrier film Z, based on position information about defects existing in a polarizing film Y having an adhesive layer and detected by a preliminary inspection. The roll 101′ of the strip-shaped film laminate 2′ is loaded in a feeding device 1′, and the strip-shaped film laminate 2′ having the polarizing film sheets X each being preliminarily defined by two longitudinally adjacent, transversely extending cut lines. Therefore, this optical film supply apparatus 100′ has no need for the cutting station B. There is provided a determination station A′ which has a determination device 3′ for identifying the normal sheet Xα and the defective sheet Xβ in the polarizing film sheets X, as substitute for the information reading device 3 in FIG. 14. In the determination station A′, it is determined whether each of the polarizing film sheets X is the normal sheet Xα or the defective sheet Xβ. In this respect, the respective strip-shaped film laminates 2, 2′ disclosed in the Patent Document 1 and the Patent Document 2 are different from each other. The apparatus 100′ has a lamination station D, either of a removal station C(1) or a removal station C(2) which are the same as those disclosed in the Patent Document 1. Specifically, in the lamination station D as a final step, a part of the polarizing film sheets X determined as the normal sheets Xα are sequentially peeled from the carrier film Z, and continuously laminated to respective liquid crystal panels W fed in synchronization with feeding of the normal sheets Xα. Further, before reaching the final step, in the removal station C(1) or the removal station C(2), one or more of the polarizing film sheets X determined as the defective sheets Xβ are sequentially peeled from the carrier film Z, and removed from the strip-shaped film laminate 2′ via another path. In this manner, liquid crystal display devices are continuously fabricated.
Technical problems to be solved by the present invention are those inherent to the systems disclosed in the Patent Documents 1 and 2. From the standpoint of clarifying solutions to the technical problems, control of the entire continuous manufacture apparatus for manufacturing liquid crystal display devices disclosed in the Patent Document 1 will be overviewed based primarily on FIG. 14, and, in particular, description will be made in detail on technical problems inherent to the removal station C(1) or the removal station C(2) for peeling the defective sheet Xβ from the carrier film Z and removing the defective sheet Xβ from the strip-shaped film laminate 2 via another path.
In the followings, descriptions will be made on details of a specific operation of a defective sheet removal device 190 provided in the removal station C(1) or the removal station C(2) and adapted to be operated by a controller 300 for controlling the entire continuous manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing liquid crystal display devices disclosed in the Patent Document 1. When the polarizing film sheets X are formed by forming longitudinally adjacent cut lines in the cutting station B, the sheets may comprise the normal sheets Xα and the defective sheets Xβ and the defective sheet removal device 190 is operable to discriminate or sort out the defective sheets Xβ on the assumption that any polarizing film sheet having a length different from that of the normal sheet Xα is the defective sheet Xβ, or discriminate or sort out the defective sheet Xβ from the normal sheet Xα on the assumption that only a polarizing film sheet associated with defective-sheet identification information is the defective sheet Xβ, and peel and remove the defective sheet Xβ from the carrier film Z on which the polarizing film sheets X are peelably laminated.
The defective sheet removal device 190 in the removal station C(1) or the removal station C(2) illustrated in FIGS. 14 and 15 operates to discriminate or sort out the defective sheet Xβ under a control of the controller 300. Specifically, in the case of the removal station C(1), the defective sheet removal device 190 comprises a dummy film drive unit 191 having a function of attachingly peeling the defective sheet Xβ peelably laminated on the carrier film Z, and a moving unit 192 adapted to be activated when the defective sheet Xβ reaches a removal start point on a conveyance path for the strip-shaped film laminate 2 (strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path). The moving unit 192 is operable to move the strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path in such a manner as to allow the conveyance path to get closer to or away from a dummy film conveyance path 193 of the dummy film drive unit 191. In other words, the removal station C(1) is provided with two conveyance paths: the strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path; and the dummy film conveyance path 193, so that the defective sheet Xβ is reliably removed before it reaches the lamination position.
In the case of the removal station C(2), the defective sheet removal device 190 is configured to be cooperatively associated with a lamination device 13 comprising a pair of lamination rollers 131, 132 adapted to operate under a control of the controller 300, in the lamination station D. Specifically, the defective sheet removal device 190 comprises a dummy film drive unit 191 having a function of attachingly peeling the defective sheet Xβ, and a movable roller 192 adapted to form a dummy film conveyance path 193 of the dummy film drive unit 191. The defective sheet removal device 190 in the removal station C(2) is characterized in that, in the lamination station D, the movable roller 192 adapted to form the dummy film conveyance path 193 and disposed close to the pair of lamination rollers 131, 132 in the lamination device 13 is cooperatively associated with the lamination roller 131, 132 of the lamination device 13.
Specifically, the controller 300 is operable, when the defective sheet Xβ reaches an end point of the strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path (i.e., removal start point) in the lamination station D, to cause the pair of lamination rollers 121, 132 to become spaced apart from each other, while causing the movable roller 192 for forming the dummy film conveyance path 193 to be moved into a gap between the spaced-apart lamination rollers, whereby one 132 of the lamination rollers is replaced with the movable roller 192 to allow the movable roller 192 to be cooperatively associated with the other lamination roller 131.
At this timing, a cross-sectionally wedge-shaped peeling plate 150 is brought into contact with the strip-shaped film laminate 2 being taken up by a carrier film take-up drive device 17, at a position corresponding to a leading edge of the defective sheet Xβ comprised in the strip-shaped film laminate 2, so that the carrier film Z is taken up while being bent at an acute angle, which prevents the defective sheet Xβ from being taken up integrally with the carrier film Z. The defective sheet Xβ peeled in this manner is attached to the dummy film conveyance path 193 different from the strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path, by the movable roller 192 cooperatively associated with the other lamination roller 131, and removed.
In this case, the lamination station D additionally serves as the removal station C. This removal station C(2) is provided with three conveyance paths including a part of the strip-shaped film laminate conveyance path for feeding only the normal sheet Xα reliably peeled from the carrier film Z by using the cross-sectionally wedge-shaped peeling plate 150, the dummy film conveyance path for removing only the defective sheet Xβ, and a conveyance path for taking up the carrier film Z, and each of the polarizing film sheets comprising the normal sheet Xα and the defective sheet Xβ, and the carrier film Z, is fed or taken up via a corresponding one of the conveyance paths.